The Foundation
Launched in 2014, our mission is to support adolescent and young adult cancer patients and their families at UNC Hospitals.
The Be Loud! Sophie Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
Honoring Sophie
Our Goals
In order to honor Sophie’s desire to enhance the independence, dignity, and identity of 13- to 39-year-old cancer patients, we support the UNC AYA Cancer Program to meet the following goals:
- provide age appropriate psychosocial and medical care for young adults ages 13 – 39 and their support communities,
- advance research in the field of AYA oncology,
- educate providers about the unique needs of young people living with cancer, and
- improve care for AYAs across the state of North Carolina.
Since 2015
Outcomes
Since we partnered with UNC’s Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center to launch the UNC AYA Cancer Program in 2015, over 800 adolescent and young adult cancer patients have received personalized age-appropriate care through the program, the program itself has grown to include nine team members, and the UNC AYA Cancer Program has become a national leader in addressing the unique needs of this age group.
Very Loud
Community Support
The Be Loud! Sophie Foundation has been successful in large part because of an outpouring of community support. In addition to individual donations, many local businesses have organized fundraisers, a local music club, the Cat’s Cradle, has hosted annual benefit concerts featuring legendary local bands, and a Boy Scout troop calling themselves “Bike Loud” has biked across the country several times to support the cause. And this is not to mention the extraordinary number of individuals who have made ongoing contributions so we can help the UNC AYA Cancer Program grow and thrive.
All this support is captured in this history and in this article from the UNC Alumni Magazine.
We could not be more grateful for the partnership that we have with the Be Loud! Sophie Foundation. And it is a true partnership. The philanthropic support that Be Loud! provides has allowed us add critical positions, do bold and audacious things, sustain our people and the work, and continue to dream about what the next big thing will be that we will do together.
– Lauren Lux, UNC AYA Program Director